A/N: Hi peoples! Yay! I'm back! Hope you enjoy this chapter!
Replies to reviewers:
DragonAngel: I'm absolutely positive I'm not Eoin, but I'm pleased that you think my writing is that good! :'[ But why does everyone want Belle to die? Well, Katherine dies in this chapter... does that satisfy your need for my character's blood?
snake-eyes1013: Yeah, it may be confusing now but it starts to fit together piece by piece. You'll see!
Spectra16: It will get a little less confusing as it goes along.
Night: Think you know? I bet you don't! 'Cause there is more to this kidnapper than just a fire breathing beast...
Disclaimer: I do not own anything that has to do with the Artemis Fowl books.
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Crouching Secrets, Hidden Memories
Chapter 5: Alle-tombe Rhane lon Merlyon
His hand was gentle as his fingers combed her hair, his body warm pressed against her own; his arm around her gave her a soothing feeling of protection. To Katherine everything was perfect and happy. Regardless of her title as Queen of Tithi (TII-thee), she was with her one true love, Artemis Rath Rye Merlyon, her husband.
Together they ruled over the magical nation of Tithi. Peace had reigned over all of the countries of the Faerie Realm for many thousands of years. But now wars threatened amongst the many magical peoples of the Realm. Many said the red-eyed dragon of legend was returning to gain revenge on the descendent of the hero that had overthrown it thousands of years ago.
As the legend went, about seven thousand years ago, Tithi and the rest of the Faerie Realm had been ruled by a group of demonic deities. There were seven in all, one for each country of the Realm. Ahriman had ruled Dieter (DEE-ter), the desert land. Kake (KAH-keh) had controlled Pegaios (PEG-a-ohs), the country of the mer. Kerberos had controlled the underground world of Dagdas. Eowyna had taken over the sweet meadows and plains of Euthalia. Nephele had ruled the mountains and airways of Govados. Orphne had taken over the peaceful land of Fionn. And the red-eyed dragon, Meru in the Old Tongue, had taken Tithi. According to the legend each of the evil rulers required a sort of tax from the people they ruled. This tax was called the Tithe. Each ruler asked for something different, but Meru demanded to have a Tithien child sacrificed to her as the Tithe. The child needed to have strong magical powers in order to be eligible for the Tithe. This was because Meru's demand was for the children to pledge their magic and soul to Meru before they were sacrificed. When they died during Meru's special ritual all the children's power was added to Meru's, strengthening her even more.
Meru and the other demon rulers ruled the people of the Faerie Realm for no one knows how long, for during the demons' rule all documents containing any sort of information had been destroyed. But one day, a young Tithien wizard with enormous magical powers had risen against Meru. Soon Meru had been over thrown, and so were the rest of the demons, with help from other wizard heroes and heroines from the other six countries. Of course, before all of this was accomplished there had been a terrible, bloody war, but in the end the good had prevailed over evil. Just like any other human fairy tale, everything ended in peace and goodness. The Tithien wizard and the others became heroes in all the nations, the Tithien hero's name was Rand Merlyon. Rand ascended to become King of Tithi, and his blood stayed in the royal family for the next seven thousand years.
Artemis was heir to the thrown by royal blood, which made him the descendent of King Rand. That meant Meru would have to sacrifice him in order to retake the thrown. Though Katherine doubted Artemis would ever give in and pledge his magic and soul to anybody, especially not a big, ugly, demon dragon. But she wouldn't let Meru take him from her, Artemis belonged to her, and nobody but her, she knew he would agree.
But why should she worry? It was only legend, myth. There was no such thing as a demon dragon named Meru that planned to take over Tithi. There never was and never would be anything of the like.
Katherine brought her head out of her thoughts and whispered seductively in Artemis's ear. "I love you, Artemis. I always will and nothing can stop me. I will love you forever, not even death can stop me."
Before Artemis could even prepare a reply something swooped down on the balcony where they stood. Under the creature's weight the balcony collapsed and Artemis and Katherine tumbled down to the garden below. Acting quickly Artemis wove a levitation spell around them and they floated easily down to the ground.
Ready for action, Artemis pulled a necklace from his neck, a moonstone that he had inherited with the thrown, it was said that Rand Merlyon himself had used in his battle against the demons. As Artemis chanted an incantation under his breath the magical stone transformed into a long, elaborate spear, he wielded it expertly, having been taught how to use almost any weapon by the palace Sword Master Orca. The tip of the magical spear glowed softly, the blade was actually made from moonstone, but it was much, much stronger than metal.
The creature that had collapsed the balcony roared. Katherine gasped when she looked up. Black scales gave a smooth, slimy look to the dragon's skin, its bony wings flapped furiously to keep the creature aloft. Ruby red eyes glared down at them, like two windows into a blazing hell. This was one of her deepest most secret fears. Meru, the red-eyed dragon had returned to the Faerie Realm, and it wanted her Arty.
Meru blasted a spell at her; it was too quick and too powerful for her or Artemis to deflect. Katherine fell back onto the ground; she could feel a paralysis spell taking hold of her. Meanwhile Artemis launched himself at the demon, his magical weapon in hand.
Before Meru's spell completely over took her, Katherine had to act quickly. She quickly wove an anti-spell charm around herself, but it was already too late. Katherine's body was completely immobile, and her thoughts came muddled and hazy. It took all the strength she had to get a look at how Artemis was doing. She saw him thrown into a garden wall, which collapsed around him. A good thing Artemis had quick reflexes or the falling stones would have crushed him without the protection spell he had cast. Vaguely, she wondered why the palace guards hadn't come yet.
A deep, rumbling voice answered her thoughts. "The demon dragon has cast a great spell over the castle, none of the guards are aware of what is happening."
With a start she realized the voice of the earth had answered her. Artemis had never been able to hear the earth but to Katherine the voice was loud and clear. Katherine asked the earth in her thoughts, "Is this really Meru? Does Artemis have a chance?"
"Yes, child," Answered the resonant voice, "this is Meru, the red-eyed dragon. After seven thousand years the demon has returned."
"What about Artemis? Will he be okay?" She asked.
The voice was silent for a moment. "I'm afraid, my child, that Artemis has little of a chance. Meru has great power, and Artemis has been taken by surprise, giving Meru the advantage."
At this Katherine fought with more desperation than ever to disentangle the paralysis spell from herself. Artemis was holding his own with the dragon for now it seemed, but he needed her help.
"Though Meru cannot be defeated in this life, perhaps in the next. And then, I'm sure, you and Artemis may reunite."
Katherine fought the spell, she could feel it beginning to loosen, and she could twitch her fingers now.
"Never give up child, true love lasts forever."
That was the last she heard of the sweet voice of the earth, because Meru was now towering above her, a struggling Artemis gripped in one massive claw. She saw that he had dropped his spear somewhere, and his face was bloodied, but he fought none the less. The dragon raised one cruelly curved claw, ready to strike. As the claw came down, piercing open her chest, her mind held on to one last thought, '... Not even death can stop me...'
***
Belle awoke with a start. No, she wasn't Katherine, she was Belle. But the dream had been so vivid, just like a memory from yesterday. It had certainly made her believe that she had been Katherine, Queen of Tithi. Wherever Tithi was she didn't know...
Belle stood up, she found herself in a garden. It was a beautiful garden, but the edges of her vision blurred, like in a dream. She concluded that she was still asleep, and she soon found that she was in the garden of the palace that she had been dreaming about only a moment before. She stepped forward, wondering why her mind seemed unable to tear away from this fantasy world it had created. There was no such thing as magic! Of course this had to be a dream. She stepped out from a copse of blossoming trees that she could not name, their sweet scent filling her nostrils. She saw above her the balcony where Artemis and her dream self called Katherine had stood, it was no longer rubble on the ground but completely intact and exactly where it should be. The corpse of Katherine was not there either, it seemed as though the incident with the dragon had not happened here at all.
Belle noticed something glint in a flower bed; she walked towards it, curious. When she knelt down to take a closer look she found herself looking at the strange necklace Artemis had used to fight the dragon. The moonstone was a deep, deep blue; it reminded her of Artemis's eyes. The stone was set in an ornate silver necklace, the silver was formed in some strange design she didn't recognize, but it was a gorgeous piece. She picked it up by the hair-thin silver chain that had held the jewel around Artemis's neck. She examined it carefully; positive she remembered it from somewhere. She took the pendant in her hand, it was slightly smaller than her fist but she didn't find it as heavy as she had thought.
Suddenly the moonstone started to glow strangely, her surroundings blurred and shifted, and she found herself in what looked like the private chambers of some wealthy lord, but at second glance she realized there where no doors or windows. Without any way to get in or out she wondered what people could possibly use this room for. She turned around and cried out in delight, she had found Artemis! He was twirling around in front of a standing mirror in a strange outfit. The outfit, she suddenly remembered from somewhere, which was traditional for Tithien kings to wear.
Artemis must not have heard her, because he didn't turn toward her. She ran to him, ready to embrace him. But her arms past right through him, and it was then she discovered that she was transparent. Belle looked at her translucent arms, she reached for Artemis again. Her hand made no contact with his skin and it went right through his body. She retracted her hand, Artemis obviously couldn't see, or hear, or feel her, and her arm had gone right through him without even a shudder. Belle found herself looking at the moonstone, it was still glowing a soft blue.
This was a dream world of course, things didn't have to make sense. She should just go with the flow. But why, she wondered, did everything seem so vivid and real? It hadn't been like this when she had normal dreams.
Suddenly, her vision started to darken; she could feel the presence of some evil force in the back of her mind. 'Was it Meru she?' she wondered distantly. The moonstone pulsed in her hand. The darkness was pushing her away from the image of Artemis, everything was becoming black. The moonstone shone increasingly brighter; vaguely her mind said it was keeping her safe from something, something evil. Then the light of the moonstone disappeared.
***
Belle woke sleeping on a couch in the Fowl's living room. 'What an odd dream...' she thought to herself. But it hadn't quite felt like a dream, it felt something closer to reality. A memory? Her mind suggested, but she knew that had to be impossible. Since when had she been Queen of a nation called Tithi? Though she fantasized about marrying Artemis one day, they had been much too young. It had been a dream, only a fantasy of her mind.
When she sat up she felt a small weight around her neck. She fumbled around her shoulders in search of the annoyance. Belle's fingers closed around a slim chain, she pulled it up over her head. When she took a look at what she had found on her person she could have fainted. It was Artemis's pendent, the moonstone in her dream. Her jaw dropped, and she wondered if she was still dreaming, but no, she was awake most definitely. The pendent was just like in her dream, same weight, same size, and same color. But then she had thought it didn't exist; now she was holding it in her hands, and it definitely felt real.
Belle couldn't remember any necklace like this. Then where had it come from? She searched her mind for a reason it had appeared around her neck, but nothing that her mind supplied seemed logical.
She had never seen the necklace before, then she had dreamed about it, and then it simply appeared out of nowhere. Things like this just didn't happen. Belle stared at the deep blue gem and thought, perplexed. Artemis would be able to figure all this out, she was sure. If he had all his memory and knowledge back he would be able to come up with a logical explanation on the minute. Belle thought harder, and she started into the moonstone. Blue, deep, dark, blue... it was the exact color of Artemis's eyes... She gazed into the jewel, her mind relaxing into a trance...
"Serenity,"
She gave a start and looked around the room for who had spoken.
"Queen Katherine," the voice was resonant in her mind, and Belle almost mistook it for the voice of the Earth from her dream.
"W-who's there?" She called out hesitantly in the enormous Fowl's living room.
"I am not a who, or a what, I simply am. Do you not remember me, your highness?"
A shiver went down her spine, as the fact just registered itself in her brain that the voice had called her Queen Katherine. Who could know about her dream?
"I suppose not. But do not worry, things will clear with time."
Belle looked down into her hands when she realized that the moonstone had grown warm. The stone was shining like in her dream, there seemed to be movement just beneath the surface of the crystal, like it was filled with a substance that was a mixture of water and light.
Belle swallowed, "Um, is that you...?" She felt silly, necklaces couldn't talk!
The necklace chuckled mentally, "'You' wouldn't be the best way to address me, as I am not a living being, but neither am I an inanimate object. But if you must call me something my first master long ago named me 'Alle-tombe Rhane lon Merlyon'."
Alle-tombe- immortal, ever living, undying... Belle blinked, she realized she understood the language. Was she going insane?
The moonstone's watery, breathy voice continued, even though there was no throat from which to come from. "Translated from the Old Tongue into your language that means 'Immortal Guardian of Merlyon'. But instead of pronouncing my entire name my masters usually simply call me Rhane."
'Hadn't Merlyon been Artemis's last name in my dream?' Belle thought. She shifted in her seat; everything seemed so vague and mysterious all of a sudden, none of this was making sense.
"Now, I suppose I should get to the point why I have come to you, my mistress. Do you remember anything at all other than the dream I just sent you? Well, I suppose I shouldn't even ask. Meru did an impressive job on those memory suppressing spells."
Belle stood up abruptly, "Meru was that thing that attacked us in my dream!" Belle stared incredulously at this necklace that had appeared out of nowhere. "Are you saying that was real?" She said it quietly, feeling stupid the instant it left her lips.
"Oh yes, of course it was real. It was a memory of yours from long ago that Meru had suppressed with her spell. But it was a strong one, seeing as it was your very last before your first death it was easy to trigger it and to free you at least partly from Meru's spell."
Belle was getting awfully confused now, "So this Meru creature put a spell on me so I wouldn't remember things? I don't get it."
"Yes, yes. Now, I must explain. All of this started thousands of years ago, in another world and another dimension. You would know this place as the Faerie Realm, if you could remember it. Do you remember the legend of the War of Rebellion? It should have been included in your dream."
Belle thought for a moment, in her dream she had been thinking about it while she was with Artemis. She nodded.
"Good, I won't need to go into detail then. So, I don't know if you remember this part of the legend or not, but Rand Merlyon, my first master, created me then so that I could help in the battle against the league of demon gods.
"In the first years since my creation I battled along side my master, gathering experience and wisdom. Since then I have been passed down in the Merlyon family, called upon from time to time by Rand's descendents for both protection and guidance. All persons bearing the name of the royal Merlyon are the people who I protect."
Belle frowned, "But then why did you come to me? My name is not Merlyon."
She felt like Rhane was smiling at her as it said, "But your serenity, your name is Merlyon! You are still married to Artemis! And you complied with the required oath and magical bond to Artemis in order to take the name of Merlyon. I protect you too, you are my mistress, and Artemis is my master."
Belle's stomach did a flip. "What do you mean I'm 'still' married to Artemis?"
"You married him seven thousand years ago; did you think the bond had been broken? True love lasts forever! Everyone knows that."
That was exactly what the voice of the Earth had told her in her dream- or memory, whatever it was. This was getting really weird. "So, what do you want then?"
"Ah yes, my point;" said the breathy voice. "You know how Artemis has recently disappeared? That was Meru, she kidnapped him, and she intends to make him give all his magic and soul to her so that she can retake Tithi. She did not succeed the first time because Artemis was too strong willed; she could not make him betray you and all of Tithi. But now that she has succeeded in capturing him at a vulnerable time she may get her will. This time Artemis doesn't remember anything. Therefore it might be that much easier for her to manipulate him.
"Now, in this time of danger, I have come out of my seven hundred year sleep so that we can save him, before Meru destroys him."
It took a moment for all of this information to register in Belle's brain. "Wait a second, so Artemis has magic? And Meru wants it?"
"Exactly. Are you ready to go?"
Belle blinked, "Go where?"
"To the Faerie Realm, your highness. That is where Artemis is."
Belle felt like the world was falling apart she was so confused. "So you mean... we are going to this Faerie Realm place?"
"Of course we are." Was Rhane's reply.
She sat back down on the Fowl's couch. Here she was in the Fowl's living room talking to a magical necklace that wanted her to go to a different dimension to save her boyfriend. Again, Belle had to check if she wasn't still dreaming. She wasn't, was the unfortunate answer her brain gave her. "W-w- how..." She let her stuttering sentence trail. Maybe she was going insane! That had to be it. But how could she prove to herself this that it was all a fantasy of her mind?
Belle got up and ran out of the Fowl's living room in search of her adoptive father, whom she was sure would be able to sort out her mind.
~*~
Butler was just about to say goodbye to Holly when Belle crashed into the room.
"Butler! Butler!" She held up a silver necklace with a blue crystal embedded in the pendant. He had never seen it before. "This necklace talked to me! Can you believe it? It talked to me! And it says Artemis was kidnapped by this evil Meru person that wants to take his soul and stuff so she can take over this place called Tithi that is supposed to be in this Faerie Realm thingy that is a different dimension! And, and, Artemis was King of this Tithi place and I was married to him! And the necklace says that the marriage still stands!" Belle was frantic, hysterical.
Butler simply raised his eyebrow at this absurd story and Holly laughed as she took out the mind wipe unit and fired it up.
Belle caught his look. "It's true! Really!" Then she saw Holly. "Hey, who are you?"
Holly didn't even bother to answer her question as she flew down to Belle's level with her Neutrino 2000 on stun.
Belle stood there oblivious to the gun. She was a bit perturbed when she figured Holly wasn't going to answer her, and she was the kind of girl who really didn't like being ignored. "Hey! Are you going to answer me? I ASKED WHO YOU ARE!!!!! ARE YOU DEAF???? CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW????"
Holly winced at the pitch of Belle's voice as she took aim, but before she pulled the trigger something truly astonishing happened.
With a roar the necklace in Belle's hand transformed into an enormous black jaguar, teeth bared, claws raking, the monstrous cat leapt upon Holly, knocking the Neutrino from her hand. Holly was pinned to the ground by the jaguar, and a silence filled the room as the human and fairy occupants stared in shock.
"Well? What do you want me to do with your attacker, your serenity?" The cat spoke to Belle, whom was quite pale at the moment.
"H-h-how... You never told me you could do that!" Belle said incredulously.
The cat simply shrugged its powerful shoulders. "You never asked."
"What on Earth is going on here?" Butler said.
Holly protested from underneath the cat, but did not speak for fear of provoking the jaguar into hurting her.
But Belle had forgotten the other occupants of the room. "That was so cool! What else can you do?"
"I can do many things, mistress. I am yours to command, just name your order." Rhane replied.
Then Butler cut in. "Wait, Belle, that thing said you could command it, tell it to get off Holly!"
Belle replied snidely. "Well, Holly is her name? Okay, that is all I wanted. She should have listened to me," then an evil glint came into her eyes, that reminded everyone eerily of Artemis. "Well, since this Holly was so mean to me her punishment is being sat on by Rhane."
And then, Rhane promptly lay down on top of Holly, much to Holly's displeasure.
"Ow! Get this thing off me! It's crushing me!" She struggled desperately
Belle was very pleased with her new power. "That's too bad for you, you meanie. And Rhane isn't a thing; Rhane is... erm... Rhane." She finished lamely, having been previously informed that the only thing she could really address Rhane as was Rhane.
"Belle be reasonable, get that thi- Rhane off Holly." Butler tried to persuade Belle.
"No, I won't. Because Holly was mean, and nobody is ever mean to Belle- I mean- Queen Belle."
Butler raised an eyebrow; if he had a hairline then it would have reached it. "Er... Right, Queen Belle, Artemis would want you to do it."
Belle blinked and looked at Holly, whom was almost completely obscured by the giant cat. "Really?"
Butler nodded.
Belle thought for a moment. "Okay, Rhane, get off her then."
Once Holly was out from under the weight of the black jaguar she retreated over to Butler, the cat was bigger than she was and she didn't want it to pounce upon her again. "What on Earth is going on here? Where did the cat come from?"
Belle beamed. "This is Rhane. Rhane this is Butler right here, and I don't know this Holly person."
The jaguar scrutinized Butler with dark blue eyes, and then its eyes widened as it realized something. "Roiben! That is you. I didn't think you would be here."
Butler blinked. "Huh?"
"Who's Roiben?" Belle asked.
Rhane said. "Roiben was Artemis's manservant. He served and protected Artemis, and he was loyal even without the magical bond. I suppose you are yet another thread to be woven into the great tapestry of Fate. You as well," Rhane nodded at Holly, "otherwise you wouldn't be here."
"The tapestry of Fate...? What in the name of Frond are you talking about?"
"What I am talking about," said Rhane; "is that you are all fated to come with Belle and I into the Faerie Realm to save Artemis."
Butler's eyebrows went up another notch. "Wait a moment, slow down here. What is this Faerie Realm? And why would Artemis be in this place?"
The cat sat down on it's haunches to tell Holly and Butler the story it had told Belle. At first the two were rather skeptical, but then again, they were listening to a jaguar that had transformed from a necklace right in front of them. Even so they both had to pinch themselves once or twice during Rhane's story, but with their arms sore they realized that for now, they would have to believe it.
"So, this Meru kidnapped Artemis and she wants him to surrender his soul and magic to her..."
"Artemis had his own magic all this time? Why didn't he tell me?" That was one part of the story that everyone had trouble believing.
"Yes, he does have magic. A lot of it. The only trouble is he couldn't quite remember how to use it. He remembered only bits of his life in the Faerie Realm, but enough that he knew to stay away from Meru. But then something must have happened to his memories, because otherwise Meru wouldn't have attacked." Rhane looked at Butler, Holly, and Belle, hoping they had the answer.
"Well, Artemis got amnesia after that car crash. Could that be it?" Belle said hopefully.
"No, no. Meru was the one who caused that crash. I have been watching her every move from the Faerie Realm for the past seven hundred years. Something happened before that."
Then the realization came to Holly. "The mind-wipe! It must have been the mind-wipe! We might have erased those memories by accident."
Belle's eyebrows drew together. "Mind-wipe? What is a mind- wipe?" Then Belle, having previously directed her attention mostly on Rhane, just noticed Holly's ears. "Hey, what's wrong with your ears, you deformed or something?"
Holly glared at the girl indignantly. "No, I am not deformed. I'm a fairy. And I-"
Rhane snorted. "You aren't a fairy, you are way too big; and where are your wings? You are an elf."
"Sure I'm an elf, if you want to be specific. But I am most definitely not too big, and fairies don't have wings unless they're sprites."
"Well actually, you are rather small for an elf; and what is this talk of fairies having no wings? Where I come from fairies have wings."
Holly fumed at being called small, but she was curious. "So in the Faerie Realm fairies have wings?"
"Of course they do."
"Really? Then-"
Butler cut her off. "So what was that you were saying before about saving Artemis?"
Rhane stood up on all fours. "Yes. The three of you must come with me to the Faerie Realm to get Artemis back from Meru. But we must hurry; we have already wasted too much time."
"Right. So how do we get to the Faerie Realm?" Belle inquired.
The jaguar flexed its body. "I'm glad you asked."
The next instant they were gone.
~*~
Artemis woke up for the second time since his capture with a headache. He opened his eyes and sat up. He found himself still in the windowless, door-less room. Someone had moved him to the bed, and his hands had been bandaged. He knew underneath the cloth he would find painful blisters and burns. Artemis scowled at the fireplace; he definitely wouldn't try touching that grate again.
Then all of a sudden his dreams came back to him. He shivered, remembering Katherine's corpse. That had been Belle, it was the exact same face; only the hair was longer.
Then the nightmares after that had been worse. He had been tortured, someone had wanted something from him, but he couldn't remember what. It had been in this very same room that those painful nightmares had taken place. But the person who was hurting him, the one that had given him so much pain, he could not remember the face.
He looked up at the fireplace mantle where the rearing black dragon stood. Artemis stared at it. That was it, the creature that had swooped down on him and Katherine in his dream. A shiver went down his spine. Were these dreams memories? If that was true then when he had been here before it had not been a happy time.
He got out of the overly comfortable bed and walked over to the mirror. He was still wearing the strange outfit from before. But himself was not all Artemis saw in the mirror. He spun around.
The woman had not been there before. Artemis recognized the smooth golden brown skin and the long black hair, the red pupil- less eyes, and the shiny black dress that showed too much skin for Artemis's tastes. He knew this woman; but from where?
She smiled at him. Artemis knew that malicious smile. "Meru?" He said doubtfully.
Her smile widened. "So you remember me? I hoped you would, Arty."
She stepped forward, and Artemis took a step back. He didn't like this woman, his heart told him so.
Meru's face seemed almost innocent. "What's wrong Arty?" She took another couple of steps forward till they were inches apart.
Artemis soon discovered that he couldn't go backwards any farther because the mirror blocked his way. She had cornered him.
Meru reached out and stroked his cheek. "It's been such a long time, Arty. I'm glad we're together again."
Artemis flinched away from her hand; her touch was cold to his skin. "What are you talking about?"
Meru looked horrified. "Don't you remember, Arty? Don't you remember us together?"
Artemis didn't remember anything like that, and he had a pressing feeling that she was lying. "But I thought Belle-"
Meru was suddenly very angry. "Forget about Belle! She is nothing to you! In fact she is only a lying little rat. You shouldn't believe a thing she says."
Artemis flinched at her outburst.
Meru, seeing this, quickly regained her composure. "I'm sorry, Arty. I didn't mean to scare you. But you should know that Belle is not a good person. You are much better off with me." She reached out to touch him again, but Artemis dodged out of the way and ran to the other side of the room.
Meru pursed her lips. "Fine. If you're going to be that way, I'll just have too-" But she stopped suddenly, her face turned back into a smile. "Of course, you must be tired. It was such a long journey here; why don't you rest for a little while?"
Artemis didn't answer.
Then, with a last encouraging smile Meru disappeared. Artemis was left alone in the room, wondering how she had done that.
He was unnerved. There was something about Meru he really didn't like, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it. And the way she had acted didn't help him feel better about it.
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A/N: Did you like it? Did you? Did you? Tell me in a review!
Replies to reviewers:
DragonAngel: I'm absolutely positive I'm not Eoin, but I'm pleased that you think my writing is that good! :'[ But why does everyone want Belle to die? Well, Katherine dies in this chapter... does that satisfy your need for my character's blood?
snake-eyes1013: Yeah, it may be confusing now but it starts to fit together piece by piece. You'll see!
Spectra16: It will get a little less confusing as it goes along.
Night: Think you know? I bet you don't! 'Cause there is more to this kidnapper than just a fire breathing beast...
Disclaimer: I do not own anything that has to do with the Artemis Fowl books.
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Crouching Secrets, Hidden Memories
Chapter 5: Alle-tombe Rhane lon Merlyon
His hand was gentle as his fingers combed her hair, his body warm pressed against her own; his arm around her gave her a soothing feeling of protection. To Katherine everything was perfect and happy. Regardless of her title as Queen of Tithi (TII-thee), she was with her one true love, Artemis Rath Rye Merlyon, her husband.
Together they ruled over the magical nation of Tithi. Peace had reigned over all of the countries of the Faerie Realm for many thousands of years. But now wars threatened amongst the many magical peoples of the Realm. Many said the red-eyed dragon of legend was returning to gain revenge on the descendent of the hero that had overthrown it thousands of years ago.
As the legend went, about seven thousand years ago, Tithi and the rest of the Faerie Realm had been ruled by a group of demonic deities. There were seven in all, one for each country of the Realm. Ahriman had ruled Dieter (DEE-ter), the desert land. Kake (KAH-keh) had controlled Pegaios (PEG-a-ohs), the country of the mer. Kerberos had controlled the underground world of Dagdas. Eowyna had taken over the sweet meadows and plains of Euthalia. Nephele had ruled the mountains and airways of Govados. Orphne had taken over the peaceful land of Fionn. And the red-eyed dragon, Meru in the Old Tongue, had taken Tithi. According to the legend each of the evil rulers required a sort of tax from the people they ruled. This tax was called the Tithe. Each ruler asked for something different, but Meru demanded to have a Tithien child sacrificed to her as the Tithe. The child needed to have strong magical powers in order to be eligible for the Tithe. This was because Meru's demand was for the children to pledge their magic and soul to Meru before they were sacrificed. When they died during Meru's special ritual all the children's power was added to Meru's, strengthening her even more.
Meru and the other demon rulers ruled the people of the Faerie Realm for no one knows how long, for during the demons' rule all documents containing any sort of information had been destroyed. But one day, a young Tithien wizard with enormous magical powers had risen against Meru. Soon Meru had been over thrown, and so were the rest of the demons, with help from other wizard heroes and heroines from the other six countries. Of course, before all of this was accomplished there had been a terrible, bloody war, but in the end the good had prevailed over evil. Just like any other human fairy tale, everything ended in peace and goodness. The Tithien wizard and the others became heroes in all the nations, the Tithien hero's name was Rand Merlyon. Rand ascended to become King of Tithi, and his blood stayed in the royal family for the next seven thousand years.
Artemis was heir to the thrown by royal blood, which made him the descendent of King Rand. That meant Meru would have to sacrifice him in order to retake the thrown. Though Katherine doubted Artemis would ever give in and pledge his magic and soul to anybody, especially not a big, ugly, demon dragon. But she wouldn't let Meru take him from her, Artemis belonged to her, and nobody but her, she knew he would agree.
But why should she worry? It was only legend, myth. There was no such thing as a demon dragon named Meru that planned to take over Tithi. There never was and never would be anything of the like.
Katherine brought her head out of her thoughts and whispered seductively in Artemis's ear. "I love you, Artemis. I always will and nothing can stop me. I will love you forever, not even death can stop me."
Before Artemis could even prepare a reply something swooped down on the balcony where they stood. Under the creature's weight the balcony collapsed and Artemis and Katherine tumbled down to the garden below. Acting quickly Artemis wove a levitation spell around them and they floated easily down to the ground.
Ready for action, Artemis pulled a necklace from his neck, a moonstone that he had inherited with the thrown, it was said that Rand Merlyon himself had used in his battle against the demons. As Artemis chanted an incantation under his breath the magical stone transformed into a long, elaborate spear, he wielded it expertly, having been taught how to use almost any weapon by the palace Sword Master Orca. The tip of the magical spear glowed softly, the blade was actually made from moonstone, but it was much, much stronger than metal.
The creature that had collapsed the balcony roared. Katherine gasped when she looked up. Black scales gave a smooth, slimy look to the dragon's skin, its bony wings flapped furiously to keep the creature aloft. Ruby red eyes glared down at them, like two windows into a blazing hell. This was one of her deepest most secret fears. Meru, the red-eyed dragon had returned to the Faerie Realm, and it wanted her Arty.
Meru blasted a spell at her; it was too quick and too powerful for her or Artemis to deflect. Katherine fell back onto the ground; she could feel a paralysis spell taking hold of her. Meanwhile Artemis launched himself at the demon, his magical weapon in hand.
Before Meru's spell completely over took her, Katherine had to act quickly. She quickly wove an anti-spell charm around herself, but it was already too late. Katherine's body was completely immobile, and her thoughts came muddled and hazy. It took all the strength she had to get a look at how Artemis was doing. She saw him thrown into a garden wall, which collapsed around him. A good thing Artemis had quick reflexes or the falling stones would have crushed him without the protection spell he had cast. Vaguely, she wondered why the palace guards hadn't come yet.
A deep, rumbling voice answered her thoughts. "The demon dragon has cast a great spell over the castle, none of the guards are aware of what is happening."
With a start she realized the voice of the earth had answered her. Artemis had never been able to hear the earth but to Katherine the voice was loud and clear. Katherine asked the earth in her thoughts, "Is this really Meru? Does Artemis have a chance?"
"Yes, child," Answered the resonant voice, "this is Meru, the red-eyed dragon. After seven thousand years the demon has returned."
"What about Artemis? Will he be okay?" She asked.
The voice was silent for a moment. "I'm afraid, my child, that Artemis has little of a chance. Meru has great power, and Artemis has been taken by surprise, giving Meru the advantage."
At this Katherine fought with more desperation than ever to disentangle the paralysis spell from herself. Artemis was holding his own with the dragon for now it seemed, but he needed her help.
"Though Meru cannot be defeated in this life, perhaps in the next. And then, I'm sure, you and Artemis may reunite."
Katherine fought the spell, she could feel it beginning to loosen, and she could twitch her fingers now.
"Never give up child, true love lasts forever."
That was the last she heard of the sweet voice of the earth, because Meru was now towering above her, a struggling Artemis gripped in one massive claw. She saw that he had dropped his spear somewhere, and his face was bloodied, but he fought none the less. The dragon raised one cruelly curved claw, ready to strike. As the claw came down, piercing open her chest, her mind held on to one last thought, '... Not even death can stop me...'
***
Belle awoke with a start. No, she wasn't Katherine, she was Belle. But the dream had been so vivid, just like a memory from yesterday. It had certainly made her believe that she had been Katherine, Queen of Tithi. Wherever Tithi was she didn't know...
Belle stood up, she found herself in a garden. It was a beautiful garden, but the edges of her vision blurred, like in a dream. She concluded that she was still asleep, and she soon found that she was in the garden of the palace that she had been dreaming about only a moment before. She stepped forward, wondering why her mind seemed unable to tear away from this fantasy world it had created. There was no such thing as magic! Of course this had to be a dream. She stepped out from a copse of blossoming trees that she could not name, their sweet scent filling her nostrils. She saw above her the balcony where Artemis and her dream self called Katherine had stood, it was no longer rubble on the ground but completely intact and exactly where it should be. The corpse of Katherine was not there either, it seemed as though the incident with the dragon had not happened here at all.
Belle noticed something glint in a flower bed; she walked towards it, curious. When she knelt down to take a closer look she found herself looking at the strange necklace Artemis had used to fight the dragon. The moonstone was a deep, deep blue; it reminded her of Artemis's eyes. The stone was set in an ornate silver necklace, the silver was formed in some strange design she didn't recognize, but it was a gorgeous piece. She picked it up by the hair-thin silver chain that had held the jewel around Artemis's neck. She examined it carefully; positive she remembered it from somewhere. She took the pendant in her hand, it was slightly smaller than her fist but she didn't find it as heavy as she had thought.
Suddenly the moonstone started to glow strangely, her surroundings blurred and shifted, and she found herself in what looked like the private chambers of some wealthy lord, but at second glance she realized there where no doors or windows. Without any way to get in or out she wondered what people could possibly use this room for. She turned around and cried out in delight, she had found Artemis! He was twirling around in front of a standing mirror in a strange outfit. The outfit, she suddenly remembered from somewhere, which was traditional for Tithien kings to wear.
Artemis must not have heard her, because he didn't turn toward her. She ran to him, ready to embrace him. But her arms past right through him, and it was then she discovered that she was transparent. Belle looked at her translucent arms, she reached for Artemis again. Her hand made no contact with his skin and it went right through his body. She retracted her hand, Artemis obviously couldn't see, or hear, or feel her, and her arm had gone right through him without even a shudder. Belle found herself looking at the moonstone, it was still glowing a soft blue.
This was a dream world of course, things didn't have to make sense. She should just go with the flow. But why, she wondered, did everything seem so vivid and real? It hadn't been like this when she had normal dreams.
Suddenly, her vision started to darken; she could feel the presence of some evil force in the back of her mind. 'Was it Meru she?' she wondered distantly. The moonstone pulsed in her hand. The darkness was pushing her away from the image of Artemis, everything was becoming black. The moonstone shone increasingly brighter; vaguely her mind said it was keeping her safe from something, something evil. Then the light of the moonstone disappeared.
***
Belle woke sleeping on a couch in the Fowl's living room. 'What an odd dream...' she thought to herself. But it hadn't quite felt like a dream, it felt something closer to reality. A memory? Her mind suggested, but she knew that had to be impossible. Since when had she been Queen of a nation called Tithi? Though she fantasized about marrying Artemis one day, they had been much too young. It had been a dream, only a fantasy of her mind.
When she sat up she felt a small weight around her neck. She fumbled around her shoulders in search of the annoyance. Belle's fingers closed around a slim chain, she pulled it up over her head. When she took a look at what she had found on her person she could have fainted. It was Artemis's pendent, the moonstone in her dream. Her jaw dropped, and she wondered if she was still dreaming, but no, she was awake most definitely. The pendent was just like in her dream, same weight, same size, and same color. But then she had thought it didn't exist; now she was holding it in her hands, and it definitely felt real.
Belle couldn't remember any necklace like this. Then where had it come from? She searched her mind for a reason it had appeared around her neck, but nothing that her mind supplied seemed logical.
She had never seen the necklace before, then she had dreamed about it, and then it simply appeared out of nowhere. Things like this just didn't happen. Belle stared at the deep blue gem and thought, perplexed. Artemis would be able to figure all this out, she was sure. If he had all his memory and knowledge back he would be able to come up with a logical explanation on the minute. Belle thought harder, and she started into the moonstone. Blue, deep, dark, blue... it was the exact color of Artemis's eyes... She gazed into the jewel, her mind relaxing into a trance...
"Serenity,"
She gave a start and looked around the room for who had spoken.
"Queen Katherine," the voice was resonant in her mind, and Belle almost mistook it for the voice of the Earth from her dream.
"W-who's there?" She called out hesitantly in the enormous Fowl's living room.
"I am not a who, or a what, I simply am. Do you not remember me, your highness?"
A shiver went down her spine, as the fact just registered itself in her brain that the voice had called her Queen Katherine. Who could know about her dream?
"I suppose not. But do not worry, things will clear with time."
Belle looked down into her hands when she realized that the moonstone had grown warm. The stone was shining like in her dream, there seemed to be movement just beneath the surface of the crystal, like it was filled with a substance that was a mixture of water and light.
Belle swallowed, "Um, is that you...?" She felt silly, necklaces couldn't talk!
The necklace chuckled mentally, "'You' wouldn't be the best way to address me, as I am not a living being, but neither am I an inanimate object. But if you must call me something my first master long ago named me 'Alle-tombe Rhane lon Merlyon'."
Alle-tombe- immortal, ever living, undying... Belle blinked, she realized she understood the language. Was she going insane?
The moonstone's watery, breathy voice continued, even though there was no throat from which to come from. "Translated from the Old Tongue into your language that means 'Immortal Guardian of Merlyon'. But instead of pronouncing my entire name my masters usually simply call me Rhane."
'Hadn't Merlyon been Artemis's last name in my dream?' Belle thought. She shifted in her seat; everything seemed so vague and mysterious all of a sudden, none of this was making sense.
"Now, I suppose I should get to the point why I have come to you, my mistress. Do you remember anything at all other than the dream I just sent you? Well, I suppose I shouldn't even ask. Meru did an impressive job on those memory suppressing spells."
Belle stood up abruptly, "Meru was that thing that attacked us in my dream!" Belle stared incredulously at this necklace that had appeared out of nowhere. "Are you saying that was real?" She said it quietly, feeling stupid the instant it left her lips.
"Oh yes, of course it was real. It was a memory of yours from long ago that Meru had suppressed with her spell. But it was a strong one, seeing as it was your very last before your first death it was easy to trigger it and to free you at least partly from Meru's spell."
Belle was getting awfully confused now, "So this Meru creature put a spell on me so I wouldn't remember things? I don't get it."
"Yes, yes. Now, I must explain. All of this started thousands of years ago, in another world and another dimension. You would know this place as the Faerie Realm, if you could remember it. Do you remember the legend of the War of Rebellion? It should have been included in your dream."
Belle thought for a moment, in her dream she had been thinking about it while she was with Artemis. She nodded.
"Good, I won't need to go into detail then. So, I don't know if you remember this part of the legend or not, but Rand Merlyon, my first master, created me then so that I could help in the battle against the league of demon gods.
"In the first years since my creation I battled along side my master, gathering experience and wisdom. Since then I have been passed down in the Merlyon family, called upon from time to time by Rand's descendents for both protection and guidance. All persons bearing the name of the royal Merlyon are the people who I protect."
Belle frowned, "But then why did you come to me? My name is not Merlyon."
She felt like Rhane was smiling at her as it said, "But your serenity, your name is Merlyon! You are still married to Artemis! And you complied with the required oath and magical bond to Artemis in order to take the name of Merlyon. I protect you too, you are my mistress, and Artemis is my master."
Belle's stomach did a flip. "What do you mean I'm 'still' married to Artemis?"
"You married him seven thousand years ago; did you think the bond had been broken? True love lasts forever! Everyone knows that."
That was exactly what the voice of the Earth had told her in her dream- or memory, whatever it was. This was getting really weird. "So, what do you want then?"
"Ah yes, my point;" said the breathy voice. "You know how Artemis has recently disappeared? That was Meru, she kidnapped him, and she intends to make him give all his magic and soul to her so that she can retake Tithi. She did not succeed the first time because Artemis was too strong willed; she could not make him betray you and all of Tithi. But now that she has succeeded in capturing him at a vulnerable time she may get her will. This time Artemis doesn't remember anything. Therefore it might be that much easier for her to manipulate him.
"Now, in this time of danger, I have come out of my seven hundred year sleep so that we can save him, before Meru destroys him."
It took a moment for all of this information to register in Belle's brain. "Wait a second, so Artemis has magic? And Meru wants it?"
"Exactly. Are you ready to go?"
Belle blinked, "Go where?"
"To the Faerie Realm, your highness. That is where Artemis is."
Belle felt like the world was falling apart she was so confused. "So you mean... we are going to this Faerie Realm place?"
"Of course we are." Was Rhane's reply.
She sat back down on the Fowl's couch. Here she was in the Fowl's living room talking to a magical necklace that wanted her to go to a different dimension to save her boyfriend. Again, Belle had to check if she wasn't still dreaming. She wasn't, was the unfortunate answer her brain gave her. "W-w- how..." She let her stuttering sentence trail. Maybe she was going insane! That had to be it. But how could she prove to herself this that it was all a fantasy of her mind?
Belle got up and ran out of the Fowl's living room in search of her adoptive father, whom she was sure would be able to sort out her mind.
~*~
Butler was just about to say goodbye to Holly when Belle crashed into the room.
"Butler! Butler!" She held up a silver necklace with a blue crystal embedded in the pendant. He had never seen it before. "This necklace talked to me! Can you believe it? It talked to me! And it says Artemis was kidnapped by this evil Meru person that wants to take his soul and stuff so she can take over this place called Tithi that is supposed to be in this Faerie Realm thingy that is a different dimension! And, and, Artemis was King of this Tithi place and I was married to him! And the necklace says that the marriage still stands!" Belle was frantic, hysterical.
Butler simply raised his eyebrow at this absurd story and Holly laughed as she took out the mind wipe unit and fired it up.
Belle caught his look. "It's true! Really!" Then she saw Holly. "Hey, who are you?"
Holly didn't even bother to answer her question as she flew down to Belle's level with her Neutrino 2000 on stun.
Belle stood there oblivious to the gun. She was a bit perturbed when she figured Holly wasn't going to answer her, and she was the kind of girl who really didn't like being ignored. "Hey! Are you going to answer me? I ASKED WHO YOU ARE!!!!! ARE YOU DEAF???? CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW????"
Holly winced at the pitch of Belle's voice as she took aim, but before she pulled the trigger something truly astonishing happened.
With a roar the necklace in Belle's hand transformed into an enormous black jaguar, teeth bared, claws raking, the monstrous cat leapt upon Holly, knocking the Neutrino from her hand. Holly was pinned to the ground by the jaguar, and a silence filled the room as the human and fairy occupants stared in shock.
"Well? What do you want me to do with your attacker, your serenity?" The cat spoke to Belle, whom was quite pale at the moment.
"H-h-how... You never told me you could do that!" Belle said incredulously.
The cat simply shrugged its powerful shoulders. "You never asked."
"What on Earth is going on here?" Butler said.
Holly protested from underneath the cat, but did not speak for fear of provoking the jaguar into hurting her.
But Belle had forgotten the other occupants of the room. "That was so cool! What else can you do?"
"I can do many things, mistress. I am yours to command, just name your order." Rhane replied.
Then Butler cut in. "Wait, Belle, that thing said you could command it, tell it to get off Holly!"
Belle replied snidely. "Well, Holly is her name? Okay, that is all I wanted. She should have listened to me," then an evil glint came into her eyes, that reminded everyone eerily of Artemis. "Well, since this Holly was so mean to me her punishment is being sat on by Rhane."
And then, Rhane promptly lay down on top of Holly, much to Holly's displeasure.
"Ow! Get this thing off me! It's crushing me!" She struggled desperately
Belle was very pleased with her new power. "That's too bad for you, you meanie. And Rhane isn't a thing; Rhane is... erm... Rhane." She finished lamely, having been previously informed that the only thing she could really address Rhane as was Rhane.
"Belle be reasonable, get that thi- Rhane off Holly." Butler tried to persuade Belle.
"No, I won't. Because Holly was mean, and nobody is ever mean to Belle- I mean- Queen Belle."
Butler raised an eyebrow; if he had a hairline then it would have reached it. "Er... Right, Queen Belle, Artemis would want you to do it."
Belle blinked and looked at Holly, whom was almost completely obscured by the giant cat. "Really?"
Butler nodded.
Belle thought for a moment. "Okay, Rhane, get off her then."
Once Holly was out from under the weight of the black jaguar she retreated over to Butler, the cat was bigger than she was and she didn't want it to pounce upon her again. "What on Earth is going on here? Where did the cat come from?"
Belle beamed. "This is Rhane. Rhane this is Butler right here, and I don't know this Holly person."
The jaguar scrutinized Butler with dark blue eyes, and then its eyes widened as it realized something. "Roiben! That is you. I didn't think you would be here."
Butler blinked. "Huh?"
"Who's Roiben?" Belle asked.
Rhane said. "Roiben was Artemis's manservant. He served and protected Artemis, and he was loyal even without the magical bond. I suppose you are yet another thread to be woven into the great tapestry of Fate. You as well," Rhane nodded at Holly, "otherwise you wouldn't be here."
"The tapestry of Fate...? What in the name of Frond are you talking about?"
"What I am talking about," said Rhane; "is that you are all fated to come with Belle and I into the Faerie Realm to save Artemis."
Butler's eyebrows went up another notch. "Wait a moment, slow down here. What is this Faerie Realm? And why would Artemis be in this place?"
The cat sat down on it's haunches to tell Holly and Butler the story it had told Belle. At first the two were rather skeptical, but then again, they were listening to a jaguar that had transformed from a necklace right in front of them. Even so they both had to pinch themselves once or twice during Rhane's story, but with their arms sore they realized that for now, they would have to believe it.
"So, this Meru kidnapped Artemis and she wants him to surrender his soul and magic to her..."
"Artemis had his own magic all this time? Why didn't he tell me?" That was one part of the story that everyone had trouble believing.
"Yes, he does have magic. A lot of it. The only trouble is he couldn't quite remember how to use it. He remembered only bits of his life in the Faerie Realm, but enough that he knew to stay away from Meru. But then something must have happened to his memories, because otherwise Meru wouldn't have attacked." Rhane looked at Butler, Holly, and Belle, hoping they had the answer.
"Well, Artemis got amnesia after that car crash. Could that be it?" Belle said hopefully.
"No, no. Meru was the one who caused that crash. I have been watching her every move from the Faerie Realm for the past seven hundred years. Something happened before that."
Then the realization came to Holly. "The mind-wipe! It must have been the mind-wipe! We might have erased those memories by accident."
Belle's eyebrows drew together. "Mind-wipe? What is a mind- wipe?" Then Belle, having previously directed her attention mostly on Rhane, just noticed Holly's ears. "Hey, what's wrong with your ears, you deformed or something?"
Holly glared at the girl indignantly. "No, I am not deformed. I'm a fairy. And I-"
Rhane snorted. "You aren't a fairy, you are way too big; and where are your wings? You are an elf."
"Sure I'm an elf, if you want to be specific. But I am most definitely not too big, and fairies don't have wings unless they're sprites."
"Well actually, you are rather small for an elf; and what is this talk of fairies having no wings? Where I come from fairies have wings."
Holly fumed at being called small, but she was curious. "So in the Faerie Realm fairies have wings?"
"Of course they do."
"Really? Then-"
Butler cut her off. "So what was that you were saying before about saving Artemis?"
Rhane stood up on all fours. "Yes. The three of you must come with me to the Faerie Realm to get Artemis back from Meru. But we must hurry; we have already wasted too much time."
"Right. So how do we get to the Faerie Realm?" Belle inquired.
The jaguar flexed its body. "I'm glad you asked."
The next instant they were gone.
~*~
Artemis woke up for the second time since his capture with a headache. He opened his eyes and sat up. He found himself still in the windowless, door-less room. Someone had moved him to the bed, and his hands had been bandaged. He knew underneath the cloth he would find painful blisters and burns. Artemis scowled at the fireplace; he definitely wouldn't try touching that grate again.
Then all of a sudden his dreams came back to him. He shivered, remembering Katherine's corpse. That had been Belle, it was the exact same face; only the hair was longer.
Then the nightmares after that had been worse. He had been tortured, someone had wanted something from him, but he couldn't remember what. It had been in this very same room that those painful nightmares had taken place. But the person who was hurting him, the one that had given him so much pain, he could not remember the face.
He looked up at the fireplace mantle where the rearing black dragon stood. Artemis stared at it. That was it, the creature that had swooped down on him and Katherine in his dream. A shiver went down his spine. Were these dreams memories? If that was true then when he had been here before it had not been a happy time.
He got out of the overly comfortable bed and walked over to the mirror. He was still wearing the strange outfit from before. But himself was not all Artemis saw in the mirror. He spun around.
The woman had not been there before. Artemis recognized the smooth golden brown skin and the long black hair, the red pupil- less eyes, and the shiny black dress that showed too much skin for Artemis's tastes. He knew this woman; but from where?
She smiled at him. Artemis knew that malicious smile. "Meru?" He said doubtfully.
Her smile widened. "So you remember me? I hoped you would, Arty."
She stepped forward, and Artemis took a step back. He didn't like this woman, his heart told him so.
Meru's face seemed almost innocent. "What's wrong Arty?" She took another couple of steps forward till they were inches apart.
Artemis soon discovered that he couldn't go backwards any farther because the mirror blocked his way. She had cornered him.
Meru reached out and stroked his cheek. "It's been such a long time, Arty. I'm glad we're together again."
Artemis flinched away from her hand; her touch was cold to his skin. "What are you talking about?"
Meru looked horrified. "Don't you remember, Arty? Don't you remember us together?"
Artemis didn't remember anything like that, and he had a pressing feeling that she was lying. "But I thought Belle-"
Meru was suddenly very angry. "Forget about Belle! She is nothing to you! In fact she is only a lying little rat. You shouldn't believe a thing she says."
Artemis flinched at her outburst.
Meru, seeing this, quickly regained her composure. "I'm sorry, Arty. I didn't mean to scare you. But you should know that Belle is not a good person. You are much better off with me." She reached out to touch him again, but Artemis dodged out of the way and ran to the other side of the room.
Meru pursed her lips. "Fine. If you're going to be that way, I'll just have too-" But she stopped suddenly, her face turned back into a smile. "Of course, you must be tired. It was such a long journey here; why don't you rest for a little while?"
Artemis didn't answer.
Then, with a last encouraging smile Meru disappeared. Artemis was left alone in the room, wondering how she had done that.
He was unnerved. There was something about Meru he really didn't like, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it. And the way she had acted didn't help him feel better about it.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
A/N: Did you like it? Did you? Did you? Tell me in a review!
